IT’S not often Tiger Woods lets his cool exterior slip but there must be something about Hoylake that stirs the emotions deep within the three-time Open champion.

After all, it was here that Woods buried his head in the shoulders of caddie Steve Williams and sobbed uncontrollably after rolling home the winning putt of his last Claret Jug triumph in 2006.

Having lost his father, Earl, two months earlier, the pent-up emotion and pressure of closing out another Major title was finally released and like a tidal wave it consumed him in front of a worldwide audience. A rare and touching glimpse of emotion from a guy who rarely lets his guard down in the public eye.

This week he’s back and so too it seems is his sensitive side.

Often Tiger’s media centre interviews are like pulling teeth. A half-hour ordeal when countless questions are thrown at him in an effort to shed fresh light on his personality, only to be frustratingly met with a brick wall.

But yesterday was truly refreshing as he reflected on the memories of that emotional climax in 2006 and assessed just how much life has changed in the turbulent eight years since.

Back then he seemed invincible but everything from sex scandals and divorce to a litany of injuries have proved Woods to be as fallible and fragile as the rest of us. Human after all.

And, as he prepares to make only his second competitive appearance since undergoing spinal surgery to release a trapped nerve in his back, Woods spoke openly like a man with a fresh perspective and renewed appreciation of the game.

He said: “It’s eight years on. My life has certainly changed a lot since then.

“That was a very emotional week. I pressed pretty hard at Augusta that year, trying to win the Masters because it was the last time my dad was ever going to see me play a Major.

“Then I didn’t play well at the US Open, missing the cut miserably. And then I came here and just felt at peace. I really played well.

“On Sunday I felt calm out there. It was surreal at the time. I’ve had a few moments like that in Majors where I’ve felt that way on a Sunday.

“But now my life is very different than it was then. I’ve gone through a lot, the loss of a parent and having two kids.

“I’ve got a completely different golf swing so a lot of aspects of my game and life have changed since ’06.”

Not least his physical wellbeing, having seen his career – and quest to bag the five more Majors he needs to break Jack Nicklaus’s record haul of 18 – stalled repeatedly by injury. A bust anterior cruciate knee ligament and stress fracture in his left leg were disruptive enough but it’s clear from the way he spoke yesterday his latest issue with the back pain was by far the most traumatic.

He spoke of being unable to get out of bed and of the relief surgery has given him. And despite missing the cut in his first tournament back, the National Championship at Congressional three weeks ago, Woods feels ready to challenge again after breaking the psychological barrier of competing without pain.

He added: “When my knee was bad it was tough but I could still chip and putt. I could still go out on the golf course.

“But this particular injury with my back I didn’t want to do anything.

“I couldn’t get out of bed, I couldn’t move around the house, I couldn’t do anything. That made me appreciate just how fortunate I was to be able to play at that level for 17 years.

“It made me appreciate that a lot more. I couldn’t do anything with this injury, I couldn’t enjoy life. Just the daily things of moving around.

“But the people who have had my surgery have all said the same thing – it changes your whole life. It just takes away all the pain.

“Once I went through the procedure and was just sitting there in the recovery room and didn’t have any of that pain any more, that was a lot of relief.

“Yeah, you’re sore from the incision but you don’t have that radiating pain that goes down the leg. Once that was removed I knew I could come back and play at the elite level again.”

And here he is, back on the big stage and ready to go, judging by his response to this exchange...

Reporter: “Given your limited preparation coming in here, what would be an acceptable finish?”